Enhance Security With Two C-Store Payment Options

C-store payments is a major concern in the fueling industry. As theft and fraud continue despite the EMV changeover (which has a forecourt deadline in the U.S. of October 2020), security is an important piece of the EMV puzzle. The EMV 2020 liability date significantly shifts payment liability from banks to merchants. The benefits for merchants who comply are substantial and include improved security and fraud reduction, reduced cost of chargebacks by avoiding the liability shift, customer card security, and brand protection.

EMV technology uses card authentication, dynamic data, and cardholder verification (PIN) to protect against counterfeit cards, the reuse of stolen data, and lost or stolen cards. A computer chip on the front of the payment card calculates a unique data packet for each transaction and transmits that data to the card reader, thereby reducing its value. EMV technology represents a significant security improvement when compared to magnetic stripe cards.

While many retailers predict EMV is the next phase of payment security, there are other security technologies - such as tokenization - that are rolling out in the market. Tokenization, for example, replaces sensitive PAN data with non-sensitive numbers or tokens. Rather than transmitting a 16-digit card number and expiration date to obtain payment authorization, a token value is assigned to work a particular merchant or acceptance channel. The token makes the data nearly impossible to reverse-engineer which will ultimately render the token useless to a hacker.

Tokenization is used to facilitate two primary payment acceptance methods.

Subscription Payment Method: Businesses use tokenization for this payment method to offer a one-click functionality for frequent customers. By enabling this option, c-stores can foster positive relationships as customers enjoy convenient and quick checkouts.

NFC Mobile Wallets: By offering the ability to use mobile applications, like Andriod Pay or Apple Pay, to process transactions, c-stores will be providing another quick payment option to further their brand and strengthen brand loyalty. As the American culture moves more toward having a phone glued to your hand, offering mobile payment technology is a great attraction and helps your business seem more omnichannel.

Securing payments with tokenization not only keeps customers’ transaction payment data safe but also reduces the liability for the merchant even after the transaction is complete. Because the merchant only sees a token for a specific transaction, that token data is what they must store on their internal servers. If there were a breach, the transaction data would be useless to hackers. By eliminating the need for merchants to store secure data, the costs associated with PCI regulation compliance are also significantly minimized.

Tokenization can also be a valuable security tool for merchants that have yet to complete EMV adoption. Mobile wallets, such as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay, have a rapidly growing consumer adoption rate. Accepting these contactless payments helps merchants promote increased revenue, an improved customer experience, and enhanced customer loyalty. Tokenization is used to negate theft risk during the internet-based data transmissions of mobile payments.

The Contactless Payment Module from Gilbarco Veeder-Root provides a C-store payments option that is secure for merchants to processes credit and debit transactions. For any questions on, EMV technology, contactless payments, or EMV upgrades, comment below! If interested in leveraging contactless payment technology so that your business can take advantage of the growing mobile payment sector, click here.

About Gilbarco Veeder-Root

Whether it’s outside, inside, underground or in the cloud, Gilbarco has the solution for your site’s needs. Our systems and solutions are designed and tested to work together seamlessly to deliver the lowest cost of ownership and best integration possible. Since 1865, Gilbarco has manufactured the world’s leading fueling and convenience store equipment and technology. Our products are time-tested and future-approved. View More